The Greens have slammed the government’s knee-jerk climate denialism as the world delivers yet another stark warning that we risk losing the Great Barrier Reef.

Quotes attributable to Greens Leader, Adam Bandt:

“It’s coal or the reef, but you can’t have both. 

“The Great Barrier Reef is under threat because of the mining and burning of coal and gas. 

“We have ten years to save the Reef, but on the same day the Reef is put on death watch, Liberal and Labor support opening up new gas fields.

Despite Federal Government approval for the Santos Narrabri gas field, the community still has two years to stop the project and save Narrabri, Leader of the Australian Greens Adam Bandt MP says.

Santos has until 2022 to decide whether to proceed with the project following an 18 month appraisal phase.

With the project not stacking up economically, environmentally, or against our obligation to stop global warming, the Greens say pressure must be kept on the government and Santos to not proceed.

Quotes attributable to Greens Leader, Adam Bandt:

Today’s federal approval of Santos’ Narrabri gasfields will do untold damage to our ability to keep global warming to 2 degrees, the Australian Greens have said. 

Instead of accepting gas expansion through a flawed planning process, the Greens have called for a green recovery - with public investment in clean energy, renewables, and green hydrogen.

Quotes attributable to Greens Leader, Adam Bandt:

The Covid Commission being riddled with self-interested fossil fuel industry executives touting their own sector as the economic saviour from the coronavirus pandemic is just the latest attempt by the Morrison Government to further destroy our environment, the Greens say.

Greens spokesperson for the Environment Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“Whether it is cutting environmental protections even before the 10-year review into the EPBC Act is completed or stacking the Covid Commission with the gas and mining lobby, the fix is in.  

Young people will be guaranteed a job, secure income, and free education under a new Greens recovery plan to restart the economy and build ‘a better normal’ after the coronavirus economic shock.

The vision for a debt-financed recovery reaffirms the government’s role in responding to the crisis, and rejects the austerity approaches offered by the Liberal and Labor parties, charting a course for a government-led recovery that extends Australia’s world-class social services, instead of slashing funding for education, healthcare, and the environment.

New laws that would require climate impacts and carbon emissions to be assessed before large-scale projects are given environmental approval have been introduced into the Senate today.

The ‘Climate Trigger’ Bill would ensure mining, drilling and large-scale land clearing projects would need to be assessed on whether they make climate change worse.

Greens Environment Spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young who introduced the Bill said a federal climate trigger was long overdue.

David Littleproud is a climate change denier and is not fit to serve as minister for water resources, drought, natural disaster and emergency management. He must resign as minister and, if he will not, then the Prime Minister must intervene and remove him, said Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale.

South Australia will continue to face earlier and earlier starts to the fire season unless the Prime Minister steps up and takes urgent action to tackle the climate crisis, Greens Senator for South Australia Sarah Hanson-Young said.

Responding to the Australian Seasonal Bushfire Outlook released today, which forecasts an active fire season across Australia and in particular on Kangaroo Island and Eyre Peninsula, Senator Hanson-Young said the PM’s lack of climate change policy is putting SA at risk of catastrophic fires not that dissimilar to those burning in the Amazon.

The Greens’ are putting protecting and restoring our environment front and centre for the 2019 election campaign.

“The Government would have you believe that we face a choice between our economy and our environment,” Leader of the Australian Greens, Dr Richard Di Natale said.

“But we all know that in the long-term a strong economy and thriving community depend on a safe environment and stable climate.